"You see that building over there," he said, pointing at the incomplete organization's building in the distance.

"Yes?"

"It's the main base of a quite fast-rising tech company on the stock market."

"And right now, its main base is on delay due to the thugs' war in Lorania."

"I'm not a genius in stocks, but there's a lot of perception going on that gives this company its value."

"And right now, that its base is under attack, closed up with no sight of its opening…"

Huuuuuuu,

"What do you think happens to its value on a market where perception is almost everything?" he asked, exhaling the smoke, and it finally dawned on Everlearn.

"So your organization is betting on the stocks to keep going down, which it is due to the thugs, and you were sent to keep things that way, hence becoming their leader....all just to keep making them money?"

"BINGO!"

Now it all made sense.

Why the little 'pay the thugs, and you'll be fine' had gone so horribly wrong.

The ones behind the man before him had orchestrated it.

It wasn't even a thug disturbance fight at all; it was a deeper company ploy that was effectively destroying people's lives, and Lorianor, and they were using the thugs of Lorinaor to do it.

"So what of the thugs? You didn't become their boss because you want justice for Lorianor, do you?" Everlearn asked, watching as the man turned his gaze to the surrounding thugs who still had their guns pointed down at them, ready to shoot Everlearn at an order from him, and he grinned.

"Lorianor is a rural, inconsequential street in Cornando City, and it's always been like that since forever."

"The only value it has now is because of the tech company being built in it. Neither you nor I would even know it exists on Nvidia if not for it."

"It's as low a place as low can be, and you think I'm interested in the lowest of the low beings living in it?"

"So they don't even matter at all?"

"They're worthless," he replied.

Everlearn's expression twisted slightly in disgust, and the man noticed.

"Why do you look so hypocritical?" he asked, throwing the burnt cigarettes down the building.

"Hypocritical?"

"Aren't you also here for the same thing that I am?" he asked.

"Huh?"

"You were sent here too, by an organization, right. Do you think they sent you here on a hero job?"

"Yay, the blue-haired boy saviour comes to save the day? Really?" He said, looking at Everlearn with the 'are you that dumb' eyes.

"Don't lump me in with your dirtiness," Everlearn replied.

"Oh, but we actually are both dirty," he said.

"The stocks for this company have dropped now, and my boss has made all the money he wants from his bet."

"Your boss probably didn't see my boss's plan to short the value, so now that he also wants some cash, what's the best way to do that?" he asked as a glint crossed through Everlearn's eyes.

"To send you, Mr. Hero, to come save the day and resolve the fight."

"When that happens, the company will resume its project, rebuild its base, and what happens to its stock?"

"BOOM!"

"It jumps into the sky, and your boss gets to make some cash for himself."

'It can't be…'

"It's why I'm not interested in fighting you at all and why I bothered telling you all of this…" he said to Everlearn.

"Now that I know an organization wants the stock to rise back, I can simply tell my boss to change his bet, and he'll make some cash."

"Even if I killed you, stopping you from fixing this and letting the stocks short… another company will come and another, depending on how desperate they are for cash, and trust me, they really are desperate for it."

"So now, I let you resolve your war, and my boss buys. So when the value jumps back up, he makes extra cash, and I get a mission extra perfectly completed, with some extra pay for the important info, of course. Hehe,"

He said, chuckling.

Everlearn had wondered.

How had X Base amassed enough money to establish safehouses in city after city, renting them out to X Guardians for mission after mission?

How would resolving skirmishes between thugs in a backwater area like Loriano be of any value to it?

He had felt it a nobler venture than some real money-making deal, but now he was starting to realize.

The truth was much, much deeper than he had first thought.

"So you see, we both are dirty little things."

"Actually, we're not to be blamed, after all, we're just pawns being moved on the chessboard by billion-Nvdollar organi..."

PAAAAAAH!

The sound of a gunshot echoed out, cutting him off, and the boss dodged his head to the side, laying it flat on his shoulders.

A bullet passed where his head had been just a moment later, striking the ground to carve open a crater.

Immediately, the boss jumped to his feet, looking at the hefty-looking thug who had shot him.

"And what do you think you're doing—" He had not completed the sentence when he took another step to the side, dodging another bullet that headed for his side.

Immediately, his brows furrowed.

Looking at the thugs, he could see their eyes filled with disbelief and rage as they all stared hatefully at him.

It left him confused; the distance was so far, and they were ordinary humans.

There was no way they could have picked up on the discussion.

But that was when he noticed the tiny strands of Nanotech around the thugs like a fog.

"Wait, is that!?"

He turned back to find Everlearn, who was already 20 meters away, standing atop the building's rails.

Just one step back, and he would fall off it.

"I placed a Nano speaker, making them hear everything. They now understand they're all fools being used, and fighting a pointless battle."

Everlearn said, as the boss's eyes changed, hearing the sound of guns getting cocked.

Everlearn took a step back, falling off the top of the building, but at the last second, his lips moved, and the Boss followed.

Good luck surviving a rain of bullets.

"Oh, shit!"

PAAAAAAAAH

PAAAAAAAH

PAAAAAAAAH

BOOOOOOOM!

BOOOOOOOM!

Everlearn continued his walk out of the building, his hands reaching for the cap on his hoodie, and he pulled it over.

Behind him was the endless shooting and bombing, lights swirling crazily as the thugs all joined hands to gun down the boss, who, of course, didn't just stand there.

The familiar sound of his own missile sniper also tore through the air, blowing apart buildings as various thugs were sent flying in the air, some blasted to gory pieces.

Everlearn paid none of them any attention, simply walking off into the distance, and it had not been more than one minute later when the wrist-tape on his hand beeped, and a notification appeared:

{"Congratulations, You Have Completed Your X Guard Mission: Stop the Skirmish Between Violent Thug Skirmish in Lorianor."}

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